* Graphic: World FX rates tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh * Graphic: Foreign flows into Asian stocks tmsnrt.rs/3lKhL5I * Industrials drag Singapore stocks * Thai baht hits one-month low By Anushka Trivedi Sept 24 (Reuters) - Malaysia's ringgit fell for a fourth session on Thursday as investors moved to price in the latest bout of political uncertainty following opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's claim that he had a majority to oust the current government. In Asian stock markets doubts about how the world economy will stagger back to recovery spurred a 1.5% fall in Chinese shares, unsettling other markets in the region, with Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan stocks all down 1% to 2%. The dip in confidence turned investors away from riskier assets and the won and the Thai baht both eased by around half a percent against the dollar. The ringgit weakened by 0.26% bringing its decline for the week so far to 1.2%, its worst performance since April, though it has fared better than a number of its peers in this year's coronavirus turmoil. The power struggle in Malaysia, and possibility of an early election raised fears of a delay to any further stimulus package to bolster the economy during the coronavirus crisis. Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, whose seven-month old coalition has survived with a wafer-thin majority, unveiled an additional economic stimulus package worth 10 billion ringgit ($2.40 billion) on Wednesday. "Political uncertainty is a near-term risk for implementation of those (stimulus) policies or projects and hence the speed of economic recovery," analysts at China based trading firm CGS-CIMB said in a note. Thailand's baht was also weaker for a fourth day, hitting a one-month low after an uneventful central bank meeting where rates were held steady and no stimulus was announced for a country in dire need for fiscal support. The bank slightly upgraded its 2020 gross domestic product (GDP) target, but analysts said a recovery in Thai trade and tourism seemed a long way off in the COVID-19 pandemic. "In coming months the Bank of Thailand will have to deliver more support to the economy, and could potentially move towards quantitative easing," Sid Mathur, Head of EM Research APAC at BNP Paribas said. Singaporean shares tumbled, with export-oriented stocks leading losses. HIGHLIGHTS ** Indonesian 10-year benchmark yields are up 2.4 basis points at 6.929% ** Singapore-listed Jardine Matheson Holdings and Jardine Strategic Holdings among top drags as they fall over 3% ** Top losers on the Jakarta stock index include NFC Indonesia Tbk PT down 6.94% and Sekar Bumi Tbk PT down 6.92% Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0359 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY % FX YTD % INDEX STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % Japan -0.05 +3.03 -0.65 -1.95 China -0.12 +2.14 -1.46 5.96 India +0.00 -2.98 -1.09 -9.51 Indonesia -0.24 -6.31 -1.67 -23.23 Malaysia -0.26 -1.78 0.31 -5.52 Philippine +0.19 +4.45 -0.53 -25.00 s S.Korea -0.50 -1.19 -2.01 4.04 Singapore -0.10 -2.18 -1.15 -23.90 Taiwan +0.04 +3.09 -2.46 2.31 Thailand -0.38 -5.32 -0.69 -20.55 ($1 = 4.1640 ringgit) (Reporting by Anushka Trivedi in Bengaluru; Editing by Patrick Graham & Simon Cameron-Moore)

Source: Reuters

Powered by NewsAPI.org